Saving & Empowering Lives through Clean Cooking Innovation

During the month of May, IMPACT will be highlighting USAID’s work in Global Health.

A major study published in December cited high blood pressure, alcohol, and tobacco as the top three health risks in the world. Could you guess the fourth? You probably did it last night.

The seemingly simple act of cooking a meal is responsible for 4 million deaths each year.

That’s because nearly 3 billion people burn solid fuels such as wood, charcoal, coal, and other fuels to cook every day. When burned in open fires and basic stoves, solid fuels emit a harmful smoke that causes a range of cancers, heart and lung diseases, developmental and neurological impacts, cataracts, and more.

Example of a pine needle powered cook stove. Photo credit: USAID

Inefficient and dangerous cooking practices are also a major cause of burns, and the acts of collecting and burning fuelwood lead to deforestation and the release of climate-changing gases, respectively.

Women and children have the primary responsibility for cooking and fuel collection in developing countries, and are therefore most at risk from the side effects: smoke inhalation, crippling burns, time lost for schooling or work, human or animal attacks during fuel collection, and myriad others.

Launched by then-Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton in 2010 with 19 founding partners under the leadership of the UN Foundation, today, the Alliance is comprised of more than 650 partners across 6 continents. They’ve joined the Alliance to save lives, improve livelihoods, empower women, and protect the environment by creating a market for clean, safe, efficient, and affordable cooking solutions. Our goal is for 100 million households to adopt clean cookstoves and fuels by the year 2020.

With our partners, including founding partner USAID, we are taking an all-of-the-above approach to ensure that as hundreds of millions of people enter the global middle class, they no longer cook as their ancestors have done since the beginning of human history:

Research: We are commissioning research with cookstove and fuel interventions that will help us better understand how to achieve the cleanliness and efficiency markers essential to save and improve lives and the environment, and to underscore once and for all that this is a major global development challenge that deserves awareness and funding on par with similar crises.

Standards: International standards to define cookstove cleanliness, safety, and efficiency had never existed until the Alliance and the Partnership for Clean Indoor Air began working with the International Organization for Standardization (ISO). The interim system that has been adopted is now in the process of being translated into permanent standards. A tiered system through the ISO will create global norms and strengthen a market for clean cooking solutions.

Testing centers: To carry out those standards and further propel local manufacturing and testing, the Alliance is supporting the enhancement or creation of testing centers in 12 countries worldwide. Previously, most stoves had to be sent to North America or Europe to be tested, proving very costly for manufacturers and impeding local growth of markets.

SPARK and Pilot Innovation Funds: The SPARK and the Pilot Innovation Funds are part of our plan to increase the level of resources, grants, and investment in the clean cooking sector. Each year, we will support entrepreneurs and innovation through at least $2.25 million. This year’s Pilot awardees were recently announced, and we look forward to announcing the SPARK recipients later this month.

Input from consumers: Each of the above steps will be fruitless if we aren’t engaged in dialogue with consumers at each step along the value chain: food taste; cooking style; stove design, weight and color; manufacturing; distribution; purchasing; and adoption. The Alliance and its partners have strong relationships with community associations, women’s groups, and others to ensure we hear directly from consumers about their economic, health, and standard of living aspirations, and then translate that information into action.

The Alliance and its partners strongly believe that cooking shouldn’t kill, and because you are reading this blog during USAID’s Global Health Month+ series, I suspect that you do, too. Find out about all of our market-enabling activities and join us at www.cleancookstoves.org.

Follow USAID for Global Health (@USAIDGH) on Twitter and use #GHMatters to join in the conversation.

10 Comments

Our group tried to come out soliciting ample advice and help in writing and in personal preposition for this endevour but it was in vain. Nevertheless, blessing in disguise because of your timely concerned Article evolved into our movement, FUEL AND CLEAN STOVE MOVEMENT TO ADVOCATE NATURE (F§ Man) specifically which means we fight and alleviate negative living standard ‘’POVERTY“, Women Empowerments and detrimental ill effect of CLIMATE CHANGE/GLOBAL WARMING, the adversary that we cannot stop but we believe we can minimize and eventually we can control
Our Technology we want to share is not new to the Filipino people. The main stream is just the same, the current that must prevail is DISCIPLINE. We could outwit to solve the geometrical production of solid waste materials right there where majority of the garbage comes from. Mess by-products are inevitable because man takes his food three times a day to survive, a general rule for his existence. The visible source of Garbage materials is in the Kitchen. Notwithstanding the greatness of Our Mother, SHE’s the innocent Culprit (ang salarin) on this disproportionately impacted by the negative effects of cooking on open fires and traditional Cookstove. As a result, “Smoke Soot” causes each year nearly Four Million Deaths from HAP (Household Air Pollutions). Eventually, Our Mother plays the crucial role in the adoption and use of clean cooking solutions. Her Family will be equipped with these God Sent Device made from Garbage as a simple emergency aid to Health Problems (emphysema, cataracts, cancer, heart and lung diseases, insect bites, etc.), Global Warming, and Economic Burdens.

Our WISE MOTHER collaborate the trend from the four corner of the world are Organizing “WOMENS EMPOWERMENTS” to live in dignity and integrity.
The proposed program systems will be primary initiated with our famous good SISTERS and the full participations and inputs of WOMEN using the F§ Man Technology (upgradable with the Salt-HER and 3Ks Global Solutions) to secure the World in mitigating the ill-effect of Global Warming and CLIMATE CHANGE.
In this connection our group wishes to disseminate the simple technology that can cut cost 60 to 80 percent on waste management disposal. This primordial ecological cycle/balance systems we offer, by the mandate of nature implementing symbiotic relationships we are hoping that this urgent proposal will be given a chance for a consultation.
Thank you for your Partnership Assistance.
FROILAN C. SANTOS
FCS-Movement to Advocate Nature (F§ Man)
Email: froilanc.santos@gmail.com
References:
1) Solutions to Global Warming in Asia http://www.climatehotmap.org/global-warming…/asia.ht..
2) New Study Estimates 4 Million Deaths from Household Cooking … http://www.cleancookstoves.org/…/new-study-estimates-4-million-from-house...
3) Saving & Empowering Lives through Clean Cooking Innovation…
blog.usaid.gov/…/saving-empowering-lives-through-clean-cooking-inno…‎May 11, 2013 –
• Watch Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vAMnDuoQ6v0
OUR MOTHER STOVE: A GLOBAL WEAPON made from Garbage (proto-type part 1)